Oil burner



ATTORNEYS "Will i5` Sheets-Sheet l M. A. FESLER Er AL onJ BURNER Filed May 28, 1927 lllllll/l//l//z/l//l/ w\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Si Aug. 14, 1928.

Jmmlmul ATTORNEYS' Aug. 14,1928.

M. A. FESLER ET AL OIL BURNER Filed May 28. 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 MM5-1. w ATTORNEYS llllll' l Illu! lll- ,lllilA llllll lllllhl IMI' Patented Aug. 14, 1928.

UNITED STATES 1,680,455 PATENT OFFICE.

HILTON A. FESLER, OF STANFORD, CONNECTICUT, AND JAMES N. HAoBAE,-OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ABSIGNOBS TO PETROLEUM HEAT AND POWEB COMPANY, 0l' NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

OIL BURNER.

Application led lay 28,

This invention relates to burners employing liquid fuel such as fuel oil.

In order that an oil burner may operate pro erly it is essential that the oilbc thoroug ly atomized, and that the atomized particles be Well dispersed through the air that su rts the combustion.

arious types of oil burners have been proposed heretofore, and in one we1l-known type atomization of the fuel is effected by feeding the oil to the burner under high pressure (approximately 200 pounds per square inch and the burner nozzle 1s equipped with small holes or apertures through which the oil squirts in line streams. This type of burner is open to the objection that the apertures are so small that they I readily become clogged and must be frequently cleaned, and the burner must be equipped with a high pressure pump and heavy pipe connections, and as a result, the high pressure of the oil su pliedto the burner constitutes more or ess of a fire hazard.

In another well-known type of burner, steam is used as the atomizing agent, but this type of burner is o n to the objection that it must be provide with special equipment for furnishing the burner with a constant supply of steam.

In order to avoid the objections to the i types of burners just mentioned, the burner of the present invention employs a rotating cup which is driven at high speed so that the atomization of the oil is produced by centrifugal force. This construction has the advantage that it is extremely simple in construction and does not require a high pressure oil feed, and the burner may be operated by the pressure of the air delivered to the furnace by a small fan.

The idea of atomizing oil by delivering the same to a rapidly revolving cup has been proposed heretofore but the result has not been entirely satisfactory` because of the tendency of the oil to leave the cup before it has reached the high speed at which the cup rotates. In other words, whenoil is delivered to the interior of a rapidly-rotating cup, it will rest upon the inner surface of the cup without part-aking of the high speed of the cup and will move lengthwise of the cup and escape from the end thereof at a rotational speed much below 1927. Serial No. 194,884.

that of the cup, but this lower speed at whlch the oil 1s discharged from the cup does not atomize the oil suliciently. If it 1s attempted to overcome this difficulty by providmg ribs or other projections wlthin the cup, the high speed at which these ribs travel serves to spatter the oil as it is delivered to the cup, which is undesirable.

The above-mentioned difficulties experienced heretofore in using a rotating cu to atomize the oil are overcome in accor ance with the present invention, and one important .feature thereof resides in a rot-ating cup having notches or teeth formed in its outer end, so that as the oil is carried outward from the periphery of the cup by centrifugal force, it passes between the rapidly rotating teethwhich impart their speed of rotation to the oil. In this manner the speed of the cup is imparted to the particles of oil as they leave the same and the 011 is broken up into minute particles and is thrown outward with a high centrifugal force. v

In the various types of burners now in use, the air that supports combustion is introduced around the burner, and may be blown into the fire box by a fan or may be drawn in b the furnace draft, but in either case the vo ume of air rushing into the furnace around the burner tends to compress' the llame and to draw it out lengthwise. flhis is undesirable in many cases because 1t requires a relatively long tire-box to accommodate the drawn out Haine.

Another feature of the present invention, therefore, resides in the construction, whereby the burner produces a short bushy flame adapted for a short fire-box, 'and in means for varying the angle at which the ilame flares outwardly, so that the length of the flame may be readily varied, in order that 'the same burner may be installed in furnaces the fire-boxes of which differ Widely in shape. In carrying out this feature of the invention, means is provided for im parting a swirling movement to the air entering the Hre-box about the burner the path of the air being spiral while the movement of the air as a whole is in a straight line, means alsobeing provided to vary the pitch of the path of the air thereby to vary the sha e of the flame.

' ther features of the invention and novel combination of parts in addition to the above will be hereinafter described in connection with the accom anying drawings which illustrate one goo practical form of the invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal central sectional view through the complete burner of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a rear end view of the burner of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a front end view of the burner, the supporting outer casing being cut on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the adjustable rin and associated parts for adjusting thev ang e of the air vanes;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view through the burner nozzle and rotating cup;

Fi 6 is a diagrammatic View of the burner, i ustrating the shape of the flame under different adjustment of the air vanes; and

Fig. 7 on a reduced scale is a top plan view of the rear portion of the burner tube.

The burner of the `present invention has a large range of uses and may be used in either commercial or domestic furnaces of various sizes.

In the embodiment of the invention shown, 10 designates an annular wall formed of fire resistant material and located at the entrance of the lire box of a furnace. The outer face of the wall 10 is provided with the usual casin or face plate 11 to which the register y 12 in the form of a cylinder is secured by bolts 13 extending through lugs 14 into threaded holes in the face plate 11. Secured to the rear or outer end of the register body 12 is a spider 15, the outer annular flange of which is fastened to the end of the register body 12 by the bolts 16, and this spider has inwardly extending spokes 17 which support a relatively long central hub 18.

Within the hub 18 is mounted the burner tube 19, and this tube is preferably slidably mounted within the hub 18, so that the tube ma be moved rearwardly within the hub to wit draw the discharge end of the burner from the range of the heat of the fire box when the burner is not in operation.

At the inner end of the burner tube 19 is mounted the nozzle 20 which may be secured to thef burner tube by the threads 21, and within the nozzle 2O is rotatably mounted the oil atomizing cup 22. This cup is designed to be rotated at very high speed, say 6,000 or 7,000 revolutions per minute, and the cup is therefore provided with the antifriction bearings 23. The outer ring of each of -these anti-friction bearings is secured within a sleeve 24 extending rearwardly from the cup, while the inner rings of the anti-friction bearings are non-rotatably supported within the nozzle by any suitable means.. The oil cup 22 is driven by an air turbine 25 secured to the sleeve 24. Oil for lubrlcating the anti-friction bearings is su plied thereto by an oil cup 26 secured to tg urner tube near its rear end, and oil is conlveyed from the oil cup by a pipe 27 extending longitudinally within the tube 19 and the front end of which enters and is su ported by a spider 28 mounted within t e rear end of .the nozzle 20.

The fuel consumed by the burner, which may be crude oil, is delivered to the interior of the rotating cup 22 by the pipe 29 supported centrally within the burner tube 19, and the forward end of this tube is shown as provided with a cap 30 having a number of holes 31 formed in its side walls through which the oil may escape into the cup.

Air under pressure is forced through the burner tube 19 so that it escapes through the forward end thereof about the rotating cup, and this air may be su plied by a pipe 32 leading from a small fiin (not shown) or other source of air pressure. The pi e 32 is secured to a hollow head 33 attache to the rear end of the hub 18, and the volume of air supplied to the burner tube by the pipe 32 may be controlled by adjusting the butterfly valve 34 having the adjustable handle 35 and spring pressed means 36 for retaining the valve 1n the desired position of adjustment. The rear end of the head 33 is closed by a cap plate 37 to which a handle 38 is secured, and is adapted to be grasped by the burner attendant to slide the burner tube to and from its operative position. The rear end of the fuel supplying tube 29 is threaded into the cap plate 37 and communicates with a transversely extending oil passage 39 therein. This oil passage extends into the laterally extending portion 40 formed upon the cap plate 37 and a port in said portion communicates with the oil passage 39 and is adapted to align with the ort 4] formed in a lug 42 extending laterally from the head 33. Fuel is conducted to the port 41 by the fuel pipe 43 leading from any suitable source of supply, and the flow of the fuel to the oil cup 22 through the mechanism just described is controlled by the rotatable valve 45 mounted within the lug 42. This valve.

is provided with a yoke 46 adapted to be swung from the full line position of Fig. 7 to the dotted line position of this Figure, the arrangement being such that when the yoke is in the full line osition of Fig. 7, the threaded bolt 47 may be rotated to clamp the laterally extending portion 40 of the sliding tube 19 against the fixed lug 42, so that the oil passages in each will be in alignment, and when it is desired to withdraw the burner tube to its inactive position, the bolt 47 is backed olf and the yoke is swung to the dotted line position of Fig. 7, which move- 1s withdrawn to its inoperative position,-

does not form an essential part of the present invention, but is described herein to make clear the operation of the present dev1ce. Y

As above stated, a rotating oil cup has been employed heretofore to atomize the fuel, but diiculty has been experienced in imparting the high speed of the rotating cup to the fuel delivered thereto. In accordance with the present invention, this diiiiculty has been overcome by providin cup beyond the en the notches or teeth 49 about the outer en vof the cup 22 and the arrangement is such that as the oil is delivered into the cup.

through the discharge ports 31, it will travel lengthwise'. of the cup in the direction in which the same flares, and in traveling towards the end of the cup it will partake to some extent of the rotative movement imparted to the cup, so that when the oil reaches the toothed portion of the cup, it will. be rotated at a speed considerably less than that at which the cup rotates, but the speed at which the oil is rotated will be sufficient to throw it out by centrifugal force. This will cause the oil to pass between the teeth or notches formed at the discharge end 'of the cup and as it passes between these teeth or notches it ,will of necessity partake of their high speed, whereupon the oil will be broken up into minute particles and will be thrown outward with a strong centrifugal force. The teeth 49 preferably are sta gered, as shown in Fig. 5; that is, ever ot er tooth is shown as eX- tending inwar ly sutliciently far to prevent such oil as may accumulate near the end of the cup from movindrlengthwise out of the of the teeth without paing therebetween. In other words, any tendency of the oil to escape from the end of the cup without passing between the teeth will be prevented by directing certain of the teeth inwardly a slight distance be'- yond the line formed by the inner face of the cup.

The air delivered to the burner by the tube 19 about the rotating cup is not sutlicient in volume to support the combustion of fuel, and an additional volume of air is therefore introduced into the lire box through the space between the register body 12 and the burner tube 19 supported een trally therein. This air may be drawn into the register body through the draft of the furnace or if desired, blast producing means, such as' a fan, ma be rovlded, to force the air into the rex t rough this opening. If `the air passing inwardly through'this .opening is permit-ted to travel therein in an laxial direction without having a whirling movement imparted, thereto, it will tend to Y compress the flame and to draw it out into the form of a long slender tube, which is not desirable, because of the length of the lire box required to accommodate this type of flame.

In order that a short bushy llame may be produced, the air enterin the register body -While moving in a straig t line as a whole is given a swirling movement to cause the air to take a spiral path, and the means to this end consists of a number of vanes 50 disosed radially about the burner tube 19.

ach vane 50 has its inner end provided with a stop shaft 51 that is rotatably mounted in a hole 52 formed in the forward portion of the hub 18, and the outer portion of each vane 50 is provided with a shaft 53 Vconveniently journalled between the rear face ofthe register body 12 and the forward face of lthe spider 15, and the bearing of this shaft is formed by providing cooperating notches in the elements 12 and 15 adapted to receive the shaft 53.

It is desirable to provide means for simultaneously adjusting the various vanes 50 and for securing the same in the 'desired position of adjustment. To this end inthe construction shown, a split ring 54, the portions of which are bolted together at 54a, is rotatably mounted upon the register body 12, and this ring is provided with an outwardly extending flange 55 in4 which the notches 56 are formed, adapted to receive t-he laterally extending shank 57 provided upon each of the vane shafts 53, the arrangement being such that the rotation of the ring 54 through a slight angle will serve to adjust the vanes 50 to the desired position. The means shown for adjusting the ring 54 consists of an operating handle 58 pivotally secured at 59 to a bracket secured to the register body 12'and this handle is provided with a segmental gear 60, the teeth of which engage the rack 61 rigidly secured to the ring 54. The handle 58 may be clamped in the desired position of adjustment by operating the clamp handle 62.

In carrying out the present invention it is found desirable not only to impart a spiral movement to the air entering the lire box through the register body 12, but also to impart a spiral movement to the air entering the fire-box between the nozzle 20 and cup rotating therein, and to this end in the construction shown the nozzle 20 is provided With a series of inclined ribs 63 projecting inwardly from its inner face and positioned near the discharge end of the nozzle, and these ribs are inclined in a direction to cause the air discharged by the nozzle 2O to rotate in the same direction as the air which passes to the fire-box between the inclined vanes 50.

As a result of the construction described, the oil discharged from the rotating cup 22 is broken up into minute particles, and is thrown outwardly from the cup with a strong centrifugal force against the whirling air entering the furnace through the tube 19 and through the register body 12, and since a whirling movement is imparted to the air, the latter tends to spread outward away from the burner cup as it enters the furnace, with the result that the particles of oil thrown outwardly into the air are carried outwardly away from the axis 0f the burner to produce a widely flaring flame, which is highly desirable. In order that the best results may be obtained, the rotation of the cup 22 should be in a direction opposite to that in which the 'air delivered by the tube and register whirls, since this will cause the particles of oil thrown outwardly by the cup to intersect the currents of air at a more abrupt angle than they would if the cup and air rotated in the same direction, thus producing a more intimate intermingling of the particles of oil and air.

If a burner constructed in accordance with the present invention is to be installed in a fire-box which is relatively short in length, then the varies should be adjusted .at a pronounced angle to the axis of the burner tube, as shown in Fig. 6, to impart a pronounced swirling movement to the air passing inwardly through the register body, so that this airwill s read out as it passes the discharge end o the burner. This will serve to produce a widely flaring flame, as indicated bythe dotted lines a. of Fig. 6.

` If, on the other hand, a long narrow fiame is desired, then the vanes 50 may be turned to the wide open position in which they extend in a direction arallel to the axis of the burner tube, w ereupon the air will enter the fire box through the register body in the direction of a straight line, without havin a whirling movement imparted thereto, an

this will serve to roduce a flame that flares outwardly only slightly, as indicated by the lines b of Fig. 6. It will be understood that the vanes 50 are not for the purpose of controlling the volume of air passing through the register body, but serve to control or vary the pitch of the path of the air, and in order that the volume of air entering the fire-box may be controlled, a cover plate 64 is provided which may have a central opening adapted to slidably fit the hub 18, and the arrangement is such that the cover plate 64 may be moved axially of the hub 18 towards and from the end of the register body, to control the size of the opening therebetween.

In order to prevent the cover late 64 from rotatin it 1s shown as provi ed with lugs 65 having holes therein adapted to receive the pins 66, the inner ends of which are threaded to form the bolts 16, above mentioned as provided to secure the s ider 15 to the register body 12. The hand es 67 rovided at opposite sides of the cover p ate are adapted to be grasped to move the cover plate towards and from the end of the register body.

As the result of the construction described, an oil burner is provided which not only atomizes the fuel in an extremely satisfac- .tory manner, and may be readily adjusted to produce either a widely Haring llame or a relatively long narrow flame, but the present invention has the further advantage 1n that it permits an extremely large range of operation. That is, the amount of fuel consumed by this burner and the horse power generated thereby may be varied within wide limits by simply varying the amount of fuel and the volume of air supplied to the burner. Furthermore, in the operation of the present burner, the tem erature to which oil is heated before it is delivered to the burner is relatively low and need not in any case exceed a temperature of 160 F. which is approximately the flashing point of the fuel. The present invention has the additional advantage in that the oil consumed is delivered to the burner under very low pressure, which is just enough to deliver the oil to the rotating cup.

What we claim is:

1. A liquid fuel burner, comprising in combination, a rotatable fuel cup, means for supplying liquid fuel to said cup, serrations or teeth at the discharge end of said cup, said teeth being arranged in staggered relation to each other for imparting a swirling movement to said fuel substantially equal to the speed of rotation of the cup, and means for producing a swirling envelope of air about said cup moving in a vdirection opposite to the swirling movement imparted to the fuel by the cup and into which envelo e the fuel is discharged from said cup y centrifugal force.

2. In a liquid fuel burner, the combination of a burner tube having a discharge end, a rotatable fuel atomizer supported within said tube, means for supplying liquid fuel through said tube to said atomizer, said atomizer imparting a swirling movement to the fuel substantially equal to the speed of rotation of the atomizer, means for providing an envelope of air surrounding said atomizer, inclined ribs upon the inner wall of said tube for imparting a swirling movement to said air envelope in a direction opposite the direction of rotation of the atomizer, and means for providing a swirling envelope of air surrounding the first mentioned air envelope and atomizer, said air envelopes and said swirling fuel mixing to provide a com bustible mixture, and means -for re ulating tube and adapted to impart a swirling movement to fuel fed thereto substantially equal to the speed of rotation of the atomizer, ribs upon the inner wall of said tube for imparting a swirling movement to air passing therethrough, into which air the atomized fuel is discharged from said atomizer, vanes within the register body and surrounding said burner tube for imparting a swirling movement to the air passing therethrough, said air providing an air envelope surrounding said burner tube and co-operating with the first mentioned swirling air envelope and fuel to rovide a combustible mixture, and means fbr varying the angularity of said vanes to vary the swirling movement of the air passing thereby, to vary the length of the iiame produced by the combustion of the mixture of said fuel and air.

4. A liquid fuel burner comprising-in combination a register body having an opening therein for the passage of air to a furnace, a burner tube mounted within the register body, a fuel-distributing cup or atomizer rotatably supported within said tube, means for forcing air through the tube, ribs within the tube for causing the air to swirl about the cup or atomizer, vanes within the register body for imparting a swirling movement to the air passing therethrough in the direction in which the air in the tube swirls,

means for delivering fuel to said cup, and air-actuated means within said tube andoperated by the air therein to drive the cup in the opposite direction to that in which the air swirls about the end of'the cup and ada ted to throw the fuel outward into the pat of the swirling air.

5. In a liquid fuel burner, the combination of a burner tube, a fuel tube mounted therein and spaced therefrom, a rotatable fuel-atomizing cu mounted adjacent one end of said fuel tu e and within said burner tube, means for supplying a current of air to the discharge end of said cup or atomizer, said air passing between said fuel tube and burner ltube, an air turbine in the path pf said air and attached to said cup or atomizer to rotate the latter, means within said burner tube adjacent the discharge end of said atomizer for effecting a swirling movement of the air in its assage through said burner tube, a register ody within which said tubes and atomizer cup are mounted, said register being provided with a `paa'ge or openingfor the passage of an air envelope-.along said burner tube and surrounding said first mentioned air and said atomizer cup, adjustable means in the path of the said air envei Vsupplying a swirling envelope of air about the first mentioned air and the fuel to pro'- vide. a swirling combustible mixture andvaryingthe pitch of the path of the air of said swirling envelope of air, thereby to vary the shape of the flame producedv by the combustionof the mixture of fuel and air.

7 A rotatable atomizing cup for oil burners having vserrations or teeth at the discharge edge thereof arranged in staggered relation to each other.

8. A. rotatable atomizing cup for oil burners having its outer or discharge edge provided with serrations or teeth, certain of said teeth being tuined inwardly of the cup to cause Vthe oil to be discharged from the cup beneath the serrations or teeth.

9. liquid fuel burner, comprising in combination, a burner tube having a discharge end, a rotatable fuel cup supported within the tube, means for supplyin liquid fuel to said cup, means for provi ing an envelope of air immediately about the cup into which the fuel discharging from the cup is thrown by centrifugal force, inclined means upon the innerwall of the burner tube to cause said air to swirl in a direction opposite the swirling movement of the fuel, means for providing an outer envelope of swirling air surrounding the first mentioned envelope and said cup and cooperating therewith, said last mentioned air envelope swirling in the same direction as the irstumentioned envelope, and means for regulating the outer envelope of air to vary the shape of the flame produced by the combustion of the mixture of air and fuel.

10. Iii a liquid fuel burner, the combination of a burner tube having a discharge end, a rotatable fuel atomizer supported within said tube, means for supplying liquid fuel through said tube to said atomizer, said atomizer im arting a swirling movement to the fuel su stantially equal to the speed of rotation of the atomizer, means for providing a swirling envelope of air surrounding said shape of the flame produced b the comatomizer, means for providin a. swirling bustion of the said mixture of fue and air. 10 envelope of air surrounding t e first men- This specification signed this 26th day of tioned air envelope and atomizer, said air May, 1927.

5 envelo es and said swirling fuel mixing to MILTON A. FESLER.

rovi eva combustible mixture and means Thls specification signed this 26th day of lor regulating the swirli movement of the May, 1927. last mentioned air env ope to vary the JAMES N. MAORA'E. 

